Disney will not rest until every single animated film, beloved and forgotten, has been remade. Seriously! Who can blame them? It’s an easy way to get our nostalgia fix and allow gorgeous movie stars to cosplay as our favorite Disney princes and heroines.
After running through the big classics with live-action remakes of Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, The Jungle Book, The Lion King, Mulan, and Aladdin, here’s what’s next on the magical slate. It’s not just straight adaptations either. The world of live-action Disney remakes has expanded to spin-offs and even television series. You can thank Baby Yoda and The Mandalorian for that. While several of these upcoming films are probably still VERY far off, some of them will be here before we know it.
The Little Mermaid (May 26, 2023)
Yes, our favorite mermaid under the sea is finally coming to where the people are with a live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid.
Don’t be surprised if Ariel breaks into a rap or two while combing her hair with a fork, because Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda and Disney vet Alan Menken are teaming up to write new songs for the film. Don’t worry, the classics will still be there, so you can sing along to “Under the Sea” and “Poor Unfortunate Souls,” which, by the way, is an excellent karaoke song.
The production prompted some (dumb) backlash when Halle Bailey, of Freeform’s Grown-ish and the R&B duo Chloe x Halle, was cast as Ariel. The hashtag #NotMyAriel swept across social media as fans complained that Ariel was “supposed” to be Danish and red-haired. We aren’t afraid to call this what it is: racist. So anyway! The gorgeous, talented, perfectly cast Halle will play our favorite rebellious mermaid.
After Harry Styles reportedly turned down the role of Prince Eric, according to NME and the Hollywood Reporter, Jonah Hauer-King (A Dog’s Way Home) was cast as Ariel’s true love. Melissa McCarthy will play Ursula, with Awkwafina and Jacob Tremblay voicing Scuttle and Flounder, respectively.
And yes, there is finally a trailer and Halle absolutely nails it. We cannot wait.
Moana (TBD)
Do you hear that? Te Fiti is calling you back and it’s not just because all the music from Moana is that good. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson made a special announcement during a Disney investment call revealing that a live-action Moana film is officially in the works.
There’s no word on official casting, but it does look like he will be bringing his character, Maui, to life.
In a special statement sent to press, The Rock said, “I’m deeply humbled and overcome with gratitude to bring the beautiful story of Moana to the live-action big screen. This story is my culture, and this story is emblematic of our people’s grace and warrior strength. I wear this culture proudly on my skin and in my soul, and this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reunite with Maui, inspired by the mana and spirit of my late grandfather High Chief Peter Maivia, is one that runs very deep for me. I want to thank my partners at Disney for their strong commitment to this special endeavor, because there is no better world for us to honor the story of our people, our passion, and our purpose than through the realm of music and dance, which is at the core of who we are as Polynesian people.”
Auli‘i Cravalho, who voiced Moana in the original film, is coming back as an executive producer. Maybe she can make a cameo? We sure hope so!
Peter Pan & Wendy (April 28, 2023)
Jeremy Sumpter’s 2003 Peter Pan remake will soon have a successor, this time with Wendy in a leading role (where she belongs). Ever Anderson will play Wendy in her first starring role, and Alexander Molony cinches his first as Peter, Variety first reported. Other cast members include Jude Law as Captain Hook (hot), Jim Gaffigan as Smee (sure), Grownish’s Yara Shahidi as Tinkerbell, and newcomer Alyssa Wapanatâhk as Tiger Lily.
Pete’s Dragon director David Lowery is attached, but there’s little else we know about the flick. We can expect it to be a somewhat straightforward adaptation of the classic, Lowery says, but it’s unclear what exactly that means yet.
Per Variety, the film will go direct to Disney+ instead of theaters. Isn’t it nice that these direct-to-streaming releases don’t have the same stigma that Disney’s Direct to Video movies used to have when we were kids?
Gaston & LeFou Prequel Series (TBD)
Speaking of competing suitors who don’t really need their story told, Disney+ is also working on a series about the Beauty and the Beast live-action remake’s villains, played by Luke Evans and Josh Gad. Executive producers Eddy Kitsis and Adam Horowitz are in charge, and they certainly know a lot about fairy tales after serving as co-showrunners on Once Upon a Time for seven seasons. What if Prince Anders were just on this show instead of his own show? What if he, Gaston, and LeFou were in a goofy love triangle? Is that too fan-fiction-y? We can dream.
Unfortunately, the show took a little bit of a back seat after the series was put on hold.
“It’s been put on hold. We just wanna make sure that it is absolutely the best it can be, and if that means we just have to wait a little longer to finesse certain pieces of it, then that’s what we’re going to do because this is a very important legacy,” Luke told Entertainment Weekly. “We want to honor these characters with the best story we can possibly deliver. It’s just on hold. It is gonna happen. We’re very excited about it. At some point in the near future, it will happen.”
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (2024)
For the next Disney princess remake, La La Land and The Greatest Showman songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul will create new tunes to accompany a script from The Girl on the Train writer Erin Cressida, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The Amazing Spider-Man director Mark Webb will helm the production.
Rachel Ziegler will be starring as the iconic Disney princess, while Gal Gadot will be playing her evil stepmother.
Mufasa: The Lion King (2024)
Directed by the iconic Barry Jenkins, this prequel will feature Rafiki, Timon, and Pumbaa telling the story of Mufasa to a young lion cub. The film is currently in production and will be told in flashbacks.
Untitled Aladdin Spin-Off (TBD)
After the massive success of the 2019 Aladdin remake starring Mena Massoud and Will Smith, Disney felt confident enough to order not only a sequel but also a spin-off for Disney+. This next chapter will focus on Prince Anders (Billy Magnussen), a somewhat obscure side character who served as the competing suitor for Princess Jasmine, per the Hollywood Reporter.
The announcement was met with mixed reactions, Cinema Blend reports, especially after Mena expressed his frustration that he hadn’t had a single audition after the film’s debut. As one of the only white actors in Aladdin, Billy seemed a strange pick for a stand-alone production. Still, we’re hoping his talent makes for a worthy watch.
Lilo & Stitch (TBD)
Please send up a prayer that a live-action CGI Stitch doesn’t end up looking like the first incarnation of CGI Sonic the Hedgehog. If filmmakers can avoid that catastrophe, we have no doubt a Lilo & Stitch remake will be a huge hit—the animated original is one of Disney’s best.
We don’t have casting news yet, but the Hollywood Reporter writes that Mike Van Waes will pen the script, with Aladdin producers Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich returning. In late 2020, Variety announced that Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians, In the Heights, Step Up 2: The Streets) is in talks to direct, which is very, very exciting.
The Jungle Book 2 (TBD)
A sequel to Jon Favreau’s 2016 hit The Jungle Book was already in the works before the first film hit theaters, according to the Hollywood Reporter. But four years later, there’s still little we know about the follow-up project. There’s no official release date, no confirmed casting news (although it’s probably safe to assume we’ll see familiar faces from the first chapter), and no teasers or trailers. The only hint we have is this: The story will dive deeper into the Disney archive.
In an interview with Slash Film, screenwriter Justin Marks said, “In the second film, the idea is to go further through the Kipling but also go into some of the Disney resources from the ’67 film that maybe didn’t get to see the light of day in the first film,” Marks said. “If you look back to Bill Peet’s work on the original film, some of which was thrown out by Walt Disney, Jon and I really dove deep into the Disney archives to see some of the ideas. We were like, ‘Wait, that’s a great idea. We really need that in the film.’ So we’ve built it out like that.”
The Sword in the Stone (TBD)
Hollywood has spawned about five billion films and shows based on the legend of King Arthur, but nothing has quite the charm of Disney’s 1963 The Sword in the Stone. The company is betting on that appeal with its live-action remake, which began production in Belfast, Ireland, home to the famous Titanic Studios, where Game of Thrones was also filmed. This is no accident: Bryan Cogman, who was a writer and producer on GoT (and probably responsible for your favorite parts of the HBO series, if I do say so myself), will write the script for The Sword in the Stone, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, of the zombie film 28 Weeks Later, will direct the production.
Hercules (TBD)
It’s true—we’ll riot if Danny DeVito isn’t cast as Phil in this live-action remake of the 1997 animated Greek myth. Literal moments after the news broke that Hercules would get its own reboot treatment, fans started dreaming up casts—with Ariana Grande as Meg leading the way. (Get it? Because ponytails.) There are rumors, just rumors, that Hollywood hunks like Taron Egerton and Michael B. Jordan are on the short list for the titular hero. No official casting news has been announced, sadly, but we do have reason to hope the story is in good hands: Joe and Anthony Russo, the masterminds behind the last two Avengers movies, are producing Hercules. In addition, Dave Callaham, who wrote Marvel’s upcoming Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, will take care of the script.
Untitled Aladdin Sequel (TBD)
More! Aladdin! Once Disney figured out it could essentially print money from the box-office smash, it quickly ordered up a second helping. Writers John Gatins and Andrea Berloff will create the script, with Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirch back in the producers’ seats. We can safely assume most of the cast from the first film will return, but no official announcements are ready yet.
Oh, and good news: Per Variety, this sequel will not follow the storylines of the animated sequels, Aladdin and the Return of Jafar and Aladdin and the King of Thieves.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (TBD)
Drawing from the 1996 animated film, which of course drew from Victor Hugo’s famous novel, Tony Award–winning playwright David Henry Hwang will retell the tale of beloved Quasimodo. Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz, who created music for the original, will return. (There’s a great recording of the stage musical’s songs on Spotify.) And Josh Gad, who starred in the live-action Beauty and the Beast, will coproduce.
This is all ~great~ news, but the real question is: Who will play my absolute queen Esmeralda??
Rose Red (TBD)
Disney has learned to squeeze all the story it can from a few favorite characters, and its next spin-off, called Rose Red, is no different. Focusing on Snow White’s estranged sister—like reality TV but with a poison apple!—Rose Red follows the titular character as she embarks on a quest with Grumpy and co. to break Snow White’s sleeping curse and bring her dear sis back to the land of the living. No casting or directing news has been announced yet.
Bambi (TBD)
Despite the fact that absolutely no one asked to relive the trauma of watching Bambi’s mother die, here we are again: Bambi is getting a CGI makeover. (So technically, this isn’t live-action, given that the filmmakers won’t be using a real deer, skunk, or rabbit. Thankfully.) Geneva Robertson-Dworet (Captain Marvel) and Lindsey Beer (Sierra Burgess Is a Loser) will create the screenplay, per Variety, but we can expect a faithful adaptation of the animated classic.
Tink (TBD)
Although another spin-off and not a remake, Disney is rolling out Tink, a live-action film based on Peter Pan’s pint-size pixie dust purveyor, Tinker Bell. Reese Witherspoon was announced to play the tiny fairy, with Victoria Strouse (Finding Dory) behind the script, per Variety, but there’s little else we know so far.
Prince Charming (TBD)
Don’t look now, but it’s another spin-off. This time, we get a closer look at the legendary Prince Charming…but through the eyes of his brother “who never lived up to the family name,” reports Variety. Sounds juicy.
Matt Fogel (The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part) has already written a script, but no further hints (so far) about what it contains.
Robin Hood (TBD)
The Hollywood Reporter announced in April that Disney is planning a remake of the 1973 animated classic, based, of course, on the legend of the same name. There’s no news of any tweaks to the beloved tale just yet, but the remake will be a musical and the creators have confirmed it will feature anthropomorphic animals in a live-action/CGI blend, similar to The Lion King and The Jungle Book. Kari Granlund, who wrote the Disney+ Lady and the Tramp remake, has signed on to assemble the script, while Blindspotting director Carlos Lopez Estrada will direct—he also directed the 2021 original Disney animated film Raya and the Last Dragon.
We’re really going to have to come to terms with our childhood crush on a sexy animated fox, huh?
